The New York Yankees’ repeal of their facial hair policy is simply business

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It's the latest move showing that the new chief, George's son Hal, who canned the 49-year-old rule on Friday, will go out of his way to set himself apart from the old top bloke, his dad.

“These most recent chats are an extension of on-going internal discussions that go back several years.”

“At the end of the day, the final call is mine, and after careful contemplation, we're revising our expectations to let players and guys in uniform sport well-manicured beards from now on. It's time to move on from our old rules.”

Well-groomed hair was also a requirement.

Grooming men into a tidy, well-groomed and respectable appearance. Discuss the irony.

Guzzling champagne with diamond dust anytime soon, I reckon not. Keep in mind, Hal reckons beards have to be "well-groomed".

G'day, why now? This move's a ripper, showing the Los Angeles Dodgers and the New York Mets have well and truly knocked the Yankees off their perch. You might be able to have a go at enforcing some strict rules on your footy club when you're the top dog with the biggest payroll in the game, year in, year out. But when that's no longer the case, players might be less keen to put up with all the hassle. If you're a bloke with a beard and a similar offer from Queens or Chavez Ravine, well, you're that much less likely to sign on with the Yankees.

Devin Williams is a case in point. The closer, who's now well-known for his good looks and his fastball, was pretty keen to avoid shaving when he arrived in Tampa for the Yankees' pre-season training. Williams, who was picked up by the Yankees from Milwaukee in the off-season, is a free agent at the end of this year. So why would a bloke who's really attached to his thick, healthy beard, who was clearly unhappy and had some stubble in the team photo just two days ago, come back to a club that made him shave in the first place? Answer? He wouldn't, and that's exactly why this is a business decision more than anything else.

Unsettling changes, like Johnny Damon as the ruggedly bearded, long-haired "bloke" Red Sox legend, to the neatly groomed, corporate-looking outfielder, and the radical shearing of Randy Johnson's magnificent mullet, are also gone for good.

Instead, Yanks fans will now watch and wait for any signs of growth that suggest Judge will become a newly bearded baseball banger, batting clean-up in the Bronx.